Law Reform & Policy

CAWLS is actively involved in law reform with a focus on issues affecting women in the Northern Territory. We do this by contributing to parliamentary and law reform enquiries, participating in representative bodies, meeting with politicians and government representatives and making statements to the media.

Recent submissions:

Submission to the Northern Territory Department of the Attorney General and Justice on the Review of the Domestic and Family Violence Act, dated July 2015 – pdf

Submission to the Senate Standing Committees on Finance and Public Administration Inquiry into Domestic Violence, dated August 2014 – pdf

Submission to the Attorney-General, Senator the Honourable George Brandis QC on the Freedom of Speech (repeal of s18C) Bill 2014 exposure draft, dated April 2014- pdf

Submission to the Northern Territory Department of Housing regarding the Tenancy Participation Program interim policy, dated March 2014 – pdf

Submission to the Senate Standing Committees on Community Affairs on the Inquiry into grandparents who take primary responsibility for their grandchildren, dated February 2014 – pdf

Submission by NTCOSS to the Northern Territory Department of Attorney-General and Justice, on the Northern Territory Domestic and Family Violence Reduction Strategy, dated February 2014 – pdf

Joint Legal Services Submission to the Northern Territory Government regarding the Six Month Review of the Alcohol Mandatory Treatment Act, dated February 2014 – pdf

Media Releases

In May 2014 CAWLS issued a media release following the recent domestic violence homicides in Victoria and the NT. Events such as these should generate public outcry and condemnation no matter where they occur. Click here to read the full version.

In June 2014 we were approached by the Advocate Newspaper for comment in regards to domestic and family violence statistics in the recently released Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory report. See our published comments here.

We featured in the Advocate on 1 August 2014, discussing the need for community awareness about the dynamics of domestic and family violence, and the importance of education initiatives. You can read those comments here.

On 19 September 2014 we issued a media release after attending the Alice Springs launch of the NT Domestic Violence Reduction Strategy 2014 – 2017: Safety is Everyone’s Right. You can read the media release here.

Articles

CAWLS contributed an article to the October 2014 edition of Parity. The theme of the October edition is Homelessness and the Law: Access to Justice. Our contribution considers the confronting, intertwined relationship between homelessness and domestic violence in Central Australia. You can read our article, “Domestic Violence and Homelessness in the Northern Territory” here.